A 454-cubic-inch engine with Merlin heads and custom built headers provide the go for the 1955 Chevy pickup.

Alyn Edwards, Driving

A very young Glen Teager with father Gary's Fargo pickup that he is now helping to restore.

Supplied, Driving

The glossy red chassis for the 1955 Chevy pickup was custom built by Geordie Whitfield.

Alyn Edwards, Driving

Glen Teagers 1956 Ford custom cab pickup came home in pieces.

Supplied, Driving

Restoring and modifying vintage pickup trucks are great father-son projects. These classic rigs are increasingly popular with second- and third-generation gearheads.

Young and not-so-young family members are turning these former farm haulers and tradesmen’s trucks into full customs and restomods.

Maple Ridge resident Glen Teager has been displaying his amazing 1956 Ford F100 pickup at local shows after he and father Gary spent five years working together. Now, Glen is helping his father complete his 1949 Dodge pickup. Glen is also helping a buddy put together another 1956 Ford pickup truck.

A very young Glen Teager with father Garys Fargo pickup that he is now helping to restore.Supplied /
Driving

In Langley, custom upholsterer Don Whitfield, with sons Steve and Geordie, are adding the finishing touches on their 1955 Chevy pickup packing 450 hp under the hood. It’s been a father-with-sons project for the past four years.

Pickup trucks have a cool factor. Once you put a new suspension in, slam them to the ground, install modern power and conveniences, paint them in period colours offset by wide whitewall tires for polished wheels, they are gorgeous and fun to drive.

Glen Teager is a cabinetmaker by trade and wanted an old truck. His uncle in Kelowna had bought a 1956 Ford pickup and taken it apart years before. This is a California truck with only a few rusted-out parts of the cab.

When it became available, Glen and Gary, made two trips to Kelowna to bring home the parts, pieces, body and frame of the old truck. Since the truck had been taken down to nothing, the cab, body parts and the frame went to the sandblaster to be taken down to bare metal.

Some replacement panels were welded in, fenders mended and other bodywork done as father and son grafted a 1980 Chrysler New Yorker frame and torsion bar front suspension onto the original truck frame. That enabled power steering and power disk brakes to be fitted.

Custom motor mounts were then welded into the frame and a rebuilt 302 engine and automatic transmission installed from a Cougar. Then, off to the paint shop for a basecoat clear application of Chrysler Garnet Red metallic colour and voila — a stunning and fun ride that was one of only 11 vehicles out of 1,100 to win awards at the 2014 Langley Goodtimes show in early September.

It’s the detail on this truck that really gets attention. From the flamed mid-50s Cadillac air cleaner and Ford V8 decals on the engine valve covers to the cream coloured wheels, this truck cries out for a second look.

A 454 cubic inch engine with Merlin heads and custom built headers provide the go for the 1955 Chevy pickup.Alyn Edwards /
Driving

A master craftsman with wood, Glen inlaid a raised V8 emblem in the centre of the cherrywood bed for the truck box. The custom inlaid crest has elements of walnut, zebra and maple wood.

Glen and his father did all the work on the truck, with exception of the paint and upholstery.Glen says it was good working with his father, who is experienced in bodywork, mechanical refitting and wiring.

“He can do almost anything and, through working with him, he has passed this knowledge on to me,” Glen says.

Glen is now in the final stages of a complete body and mechanical restoration of a 1965 Mustang for his wife Jackie.

“She told me she wouldn’t drive the truck until I put the first scratch on it,” he says. “Now, she will have her own collector car to drive.”

Over at the Whitfield shop in Langley, the 1955 Chevy pickup purchased in pieces from the operator of a neighbouring shop has been handcrafted literally from the frame up.

Geordie, a fire safety technician by day, applied his fabricating and welding skills to custom-build the frame for the pickup to handle NASCAR front suspension and a muscle-bound 454 cubic inch engine with Merlin heads. He also fabricated the custom headers.

Brother Steve did all the bodywork and paint work on the jet-black hauler, which is laser straight. The dash was filled and a digital gauge package added.

Father Don applied his master upholstery skills to create the supple red leather and suede interior, which provides a striking contrast with the black exterior. Don estimates he and his sons have spent a combined 3,000 hours on the truck, with more to come.

The restoration and modification is a way for fathers to pass their skills on to their sons while building something they can share. But Don is learning new tricks from his sons.

“It’s been a great experience working with them on this project which is coming together nicely,” he says.